Exceptional young ladies

I had lunch today with a young woman who interned at my work briefly this year. I haven't seen her in several months. She is graduating from college in a few weeks and then she'll be off to London to study Shakespeare next year. I'm not sure how it happened exactly but she sort of became my charge while she worked there and we developed what I hope will be a lasting friendship.

She was sitting there picking at her pasta at Eddie George's restaurant on campus while I tried to down my lousy Caesar salad, happily telling me about what she was looking forward to, her love life, how she is uncomfortable in her size 2 body. I laughed at her and asked "How the hell old are you anyway?" "Twenty-one" she replied almost apologetically. I told her "your ass is never going to look this good ever again. So enjoy the fact that you have a tiny size 2 ass because years from now you're going to remember that I said this and you'll say to yourself "Holy Shit! She was right!"

We finished our lunch and stood at the corner of 11th and High St squinting in the sunlight before saying goodbye. In that moment, I really wanted to cry. A part of me wants to weep now because I worry about how the world will treat this lamb of a girl. She is optimistic and earnest, full of promise with her skinny ass and even skinnier perspective of the world and its possibilities. The other thing I thought was I might never see this kid again. If I had a daughter, I'd want her to grow up to be just like this young woman. Exceptional and green.

Dinner: Taco Pizza from Eagles in New Albany (Is it Italian? Is it Mexican?)
Listening: Soft Touch - Meaghan Smith

Balancing Act

I need some balance in my life. Or maybe I already have it. I can't tell. Ironically, on days that I've schedule off, I almost always find a way not to relax.

This past weekend was the Memorial Day weekend. Nearly every person that I posed this question to on Tuesday "How was your weekend?" replied with something to the effect of "Great! I spent all of my time in my garden." The closest I got to that was going with my mother-in-law to pick out a Japanese maple tree which today looks crunchy and slightly sickly.

I gigged on Saturday and Sunday and camped out under the stars in the cold on Sunday night. Fortunately, I consumed just enough bourbon to keep myself reasonably warm.

Monday morning I got home and realized the laundry bomb had exploded in the basement once again and so all the time I had purposefully set aside to spend in my garden was instead spent washing muddy clothing. I can never complain at least that my life is boring.

Dinner: Falafel sandwich
Listening to : Miss Molly - Lost For Words

Wouldn't you know it...

A few weeks ago I finally had a chance to just take it easy for the weekend. No gigs, no nothing. Wouldn't you know it, I found it really hard to just sit and relax. A friend of mine was saying she has the same problem. When she's not on the road and just home, she feels like she can hardly keep still. I wonder if there's a name for that. Its something that simultaneously annoys and amuses me.

There has been no lack of activity for me lately. I was in Baltimore a few weeks ago and just got back from a show in New York at Banjo Jim's with my friend Megan. Its been a 30 hour whirlwind.

Larry and I caught a plane to New York Friday morning and hopped a taxi to Brooklyn to our friends Manj and Bill's house. We hung out for a little bit, power-napped for 30 minutes and then hit the subway to the East Village for dinner at an interesting hookah bar and restaurant called Rico's. We ordered kebabs and falafel and a few minutes later a taxi pulled up, a delivery guy jumped out and handed our dinner to the waiter. I've never been to a restaurant where that happened.

Last night was a great night for music in New York as it always is. As luck would have it our friend Happy Chichester was playing at the Bowery Ballroom with RJD2 so Manj and Bill caught our set at Banjo Jim's and then high-tailed it to the Bowery to see Happy and then ran back to Banjo Jim's just in time to see the end of Megan's set.

Banjo Jim's was a great night with a lot of great music. In addition to Megan, Tony Scherr played a short but amazing set. Meg, Larry and I were hanging out at the bar before Tony's set when a charming and slightly intoxicated Irishman began reciting poetry to us.

Listening: The Girl You Lost to Cocaine - Sia
Dinner: Lettuce Wraps at Frog Bear with an Absolut Martini